Hi Ladies. I'm hoping you can shed some light on something for me...
I made a strawberry filling for my cake, and refrigerated it overnight. I tasted it before it went on the cake and it tasted fine. Lightly sweet, with the standard strawberry tartness, but not too tart...ya know? I decorated the cake the same day I put the filling on. Base buttercream coat then covered with MM Fondant. The cakes were frozen for a few days, thawed out, then filled and stacked while still somewhat cold. I put the filling on at about 1pm yesterday, did the base ice immediately after filling and stacking. (maybe 15 min?), then immediately covered with MM fondant after that (another 30 min tops...). After all of the final decorations and everything, i would say the cake was finished as of about 4pm. The cake sat on the counter (as I've always been told you don't want to refrigerate a cake with fondant, and that the fondant will lock in the freshness of the cake and fillings, etc). So it sat on the counter and my customer picked it up at noon today, and it was consumed at about 2 or 3pm today...yet she just got back with me and said it tasted as though the filling had gone bad. That it was very sour!?!?! Any ideas on what could have caused this? I surely don't want it to happen again!!
Maybe she mis-took the tartness of the filling for it being sour? What did you use to make the filling? Were there items in there that could have gone bad? I don't know if the flavor of the cake could have contributed to the taste of the filling also.
~Chelle
The cake sat on the counter (as I've always been told you don't want to refrigerate a cake with fondant, and that the fondant will lock in the freshness of the cake and fillings, etc).
I don't know how your filling was made or what you may have added to it, but fresh strawberries are definitely perishable and must be refrigerated or they can mold overnight.
Buttercream and fondant will lock in the freshness of the cake and prevent it from drying out, but perishable fillings must be refrigerated regardless of what the condensation does to fondant when it returns to room temperature.
The cake sat on the counter (as I've always been told you don't want to refrigerate a cake with fondant, and that the fondant will lock in the freshness of the cake and fillings, etc).
I don't know how your filling was made or what you may have added to it, but fresh strawberries are definitely perishable and must be refrigerated or they can mold overnight.
Buttercream and fondant will lock in the freshness of the cake and prevent it from drying out, but perishable fillings must be refrigerated regardless of what the condensation does to fondant when it returns to room temperature.
I strongly agree.
If you choose to use a perishable filling and cover the cake in fondant, then you MUST refrigerate it.
Better to deal with some sweating on the cake than a filling gone bad.
You can limit the sweating by boxing the room temp cake and wrapping the box in saran then putting it in the fridge. Don't remove the wrappings until the cake has, again, come to room temp.
Rae
It was a marble cake, and...
My filling recipe was:
1 16oz pkg frozen strawberries, thawed.
1/2 c sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp lemon juice
Strain strawberries reserving liquid. Add enough water to make 1-1/4 cups of liquid.
In saucepan, combine strawberry/water liquid, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice. Cook until boiling and thick, whisking constantly.
Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
Strain and press pulp of strawberries through fine mesh strainer, mash strawberries well.
Add both pulp and mashed strawberries to cooled mixture.
Refrigerate until ready to use.
Don't be sorry!! I asked for advice and opinions, and now I know, that any cake with a fruit filling should be refrigerated. Period. One more question though. What if I were to use like the jarred preserves? You think I should still refrigerate that? I'd hate to do that because one of the things I strive for is that homemade taste, but considering some other factors, that may be a better option for me if that's the case...
.....What if I were to use like the jarred preserves? You think I should still refrigerate that? .........
One point that has not been raised is how warm was it in your area? If it is hot and humid that would definately cause the filling to possibly go bad.
I do think the customer was confusing tartness w/it being sour unless they specifically said it tasted moldy or had a 'tingley'ness to it.
............What if I were to use like the jarred preserves? You think I should still refrigerate that? .......
No I have never frig'd cakes w/preserves in them. It is no different than using the sleeved fillings.
there are some of the brands that say to refrigerate after opening but it is my understanding that that only prevents the preserves from 'sugering' - getting hard lumps.
.....What if I were to use like the jarred preserves? You think I should still refrigerate that? .........
One point that has not been raised is how warm was it in your area? If it is hot and humid that would definately cause the filling to possibly go bad.
I do think the customer was confusing tartness w/it being sour unless they specifically said it tasted moldy or had a 'tingley'ness to it.
............What if I were to use like the jarred preserves? You think I should still refrigerate that? .......
No I have never frig'd cakes w/preserves in them. It is no different than using the sleeved fillings.
there are some of the brands that say to refrigerate after opening but it is my understanding that that only prevents the preserves from 'sugering' - getting hard lumps.
Well, I live in Colorado...and the highs here have been in the mid 60's to low 70's. The kitchen area really isn't that warm because I was the only one in the kitchen that day and nobody had the oven going. And in the area where the cake sat...well, let's just say they keep that office at like 30 below! at least it feels like that in there. I would say it has to be a max of 60-65 degrees in that area at all times. And with the lows at night here being in the upper 30's, I'm sure it got even colder in there.
My customer said it was SOUR, she didn't say it tasted moldy or "tingly" or carbonated...Even overnight, especially since no air was getting to it, and the fact that the area that it sat in stays pretty cool, I would doubt that it went bad to the point of tasting disgusting or making anyone sick.
I dunno, I offered her 50% off her next order and a free 8" round cake of their choice for her and her family to have. So we'll see what happens.
But I'm also throwing in the factor (and I'm really trying not to judge here) but this cake was for a Baby Shower, and she said she wasn't really worried about it too much since everyone was so drunk from playing beer pong that they didn't want cake anyway. So I'm not sure if the "drunk" factor had anything to do with their "tastes" either.
Oh boy..........I also have feeling it wasn't you filling. It most likely was more tart than they/she expected.
You really are doing the right thing w/what you have offered her.
Unless you get any of the cake back you will never know for sure what the problem was (if any).
The cake was kept cool....and yes, it probably should have been in the frig....but you know, I would have stored it exactly the way you did.
I have to chime in and say I don't think it was your filling either. I don't think I've ever heard of beer pong being played at a Baby Shower......... I definitely think the beer skewed their taste buds (at the least, lol).
Given the conditions, I probably would have stored the cake the same way overnight. I regularly store cakes with a pudding filling (box of pudding made with half the milk called for) on the counter (iced and/or fondanted), and have no problems with them.
~Chelle
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